Keynote Address

Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) for Outreach and Social Media

Department of Defense

Sumit Agarwal was appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) for Outreach and Social Media on Jan 19, 2010. He serves as staff advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs (ASD(PA)) on how best to create two-way dialogues with American citizens and the global community utilizing traditional outreach methods, as well as new/social media tools (e.g., blogs, social networks, instant messaging, photo sharing, Web 2.0 technologies). He is responsible for formulating and recommending policies that enable servicemembers and their families to better communicate, and that enable the Military Services to use new/social media platforms for outreach and citizen interaction.

Prior to joining the Defense Department, Mr. Agarwal ran the mobile product management team for Google’s North American operations, and helped develop Google’s mobile services for devices like iPhone, Android, and Blackberry. Prior to joining Google, he invested in consumer Internet technologies as an entrepreneur. Mr. Agarwal also co-founded and led Quova, a geo-location company that now fulfills the Internet Protocol geo-location needs of Microsoft, Google, and many U.S. defense and intelligence agencies.As an Air Force Reserve officer, Mr. Agarwal was assigned to the 175th Network Warfare Squadron, Fort Meade, Maryland, as a network intelligence officer focused on cyber-warfare. From 1998 to 2004, he served as a civil engineering officer. During this time, he also deployed to Qatar in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM, helping to design and build the Combined Air Operations Center.Mr. Agarwal majored in Chemical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and holds a Master’s degree in Military Operational Art and Science from Air University. He is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations.